Adelle & Johnny – Equine Photoshoot

Today I share with you the beautiful story between one lovely young lady and her horse John. I first met Adelle back in May 2012 when I arrived at the livery yard with my new horse where she just happened to work. At that time, I didn’t meet John it was only this year. I had the pleasure of capturing his final days and what an amazing horse he truly was. Grab a cuppa and some tissues and read on…..

John – A Tribute

John was saved by a man called Kevin from an Irish slaughterhouse. That day Kevin paid £300 for him, took him home and started having him trained by Andrew Oliver. In 2004 he had a wind operation and this was the first time Adelle got to meet him as she was over Ireland with her dad helping Kevin rehabilitate John by hacking him out. Soon enough he went on to get several placings and a win at Down Royal. During his racing career he won an approximate total of £9000. After his win and seeing as he was now 8 years old, Kevin took the decision to retire him. Adelle’s dad found out about this and bought him for Adelle as a surprise 21st birthday present. Adelle told me that John was a bit of a nightmare when he first arrived. She also had the challenge of retraining him as she’d never had to reschool an ex-racehorse before. She told me that he would rear when he didn’t understand what was being asked and was very sharp. With the help of friends and a fabulous instructor Adelle and John made great progress, taking about 2 years to get him properly retrained. In the early years we didn’t compete much as Adelle had no transport and John could be a little difficult to load. The last 3 years has been on and off riding as Adelle and John were battling John’s arthritis. Sadly it had spread badly to all his legs and his neck leaving him needing 3 butes a day. Us horse lovers all know the side effects of bute in large amounts. Adelle saw how uncomfortable he was, struggling to graze and hold his weight, she made the hardest decision of her entire life and let him go to Rainbow Bridge with his dignity in tact. The day before, Adelle spent time walking around on him bareback in the sunshine and he was so happy. The morning of Adelle and John’s final day was spent feeding him all the carrots, apples and herbal treats he wanted. John was calm throughout and didn’t move, bearing in mind he was a needle shy horse. Adelle and her dad were with him as he left them. Adelle described John as her star dressage horse and is what he loved. All the sweat and tears that went into him helped him and her grow into an amazing partnership and he was her horse of a lifetime. He gave his heart and soul to Adelle and she says she will be forever in his debt for the things he helped her get through and achieve.